Oakland City Council has ordered a Nigerian medical doctor, Matthew Bernard, and his wife to pay a fine of nearly $1 million after they were found responsible for cutting down 38 legally protected trees on and around their Claremont Avenue property in the United States.

According to California-based media platform KQED, more than 20 residents spoke at a public hearing on Tuesday, calling for strict enforcement of Oakland’s tree protection laws. They argued that the trees are important for wildfire prevention, public health, and environmental equity due to the city’s tree canopy.

Bernard and his wife, Lynn Warner, maintained that the trees were removed based on the advice of an arborist. Diaspora Tales also reported that the couple had earlier claimed the trees were “d+ad, d+ing, leaning,” or in a “hazardous condition” before they were cut down nearly four years ago.

However, the city rejected their explanation and imposed a fine of $915,135.40 on the couple. A lien was also placed on the property, stopping any sale or development until the fine is fully paid.

Defending the decision, community tree specialist Erys Gagnez said: “Trees of that size are not commercially available for replacement. Even with replanting, it will take decades, even centuries, to restore the ecological and protective functions that were lost. The scale of the fine reflects this reality.”